“Peter & the Space Between” by Sitji Chou

Today is a sad day because we’re presenting the tenth and final selection in this year’s Cartoon Brew Student Animation Festival, but it’s a happy day because we’re debuting the excellent Peter and the Space Between by Sitji Chou, a recent graduate of Emily Carr University of Art + Design in Vancouver, British Columbia.

Chou’s film–”about a man who tries to understand the futility of creating human connections when they have been impeded by the microcosmic void between material particles”–addresses a difficult topic with artfulness and poignancy. The elongated and sharply angular design of Peter suggests visual distress in a German Expressionist mold, and the experimental effects animation and abstract graphics communicate Peter’s inner thoughts better than any literal character animation could possible do so. The minimalist score and sound design by Raphael Choi hits the right tone and adds another layer of meaning to this thoughtful short.